The world of optical fibre communications often requires that optical fibres be joined in order to obtain longer distances between optical transceivers. This process is known in the communications industry as splicing.
The military uses a system of communications known as tactical communications. This system utilizes special rugged fibre optic cables, having generally 2 to 4 optical fibres per cable, which are stored on reels. The cable is deployed in the field and interfaced to fibre optic transceivers at each end thus providing communications. During field activities, the cable is often damaged and must be repaired on site.
Splicing fibre optic cables together is not an easy task because the splice must be rugged and yet flexible. Many splice systems lack tensile strength because the splice mechanism does not extend the continuity in the strength member of the cables. Those splices that show good compressive strength do so at the expensive of bulkiness, which interferes with retrieval and redeployment of the cable. Flexibility is also beneficial during retrieval and redeployment, which is a problem because most splice systems are very stiff.
While splice flexibility is desirable for practical reasons, there is a problem in that fibre optic cables will become damaged or performance will be impaired if the fibres are bent in too tight a radius. Thus, there is a need for a flexible splice that nonetheless prevents the fibres from being bent into dangerously tight radii.
Tactical military cable systems are also required to tolerate harsh environmental conditions, which many splice systems cannot reliably endure.
Difficulties also arise while installing the splice itself. Most splicing systems that accommodate multi-fibre cables are not forgiving. That is, each of the splices in the multi-fibre cable must be approximately the same length because the splice enclosure cannot accommodate any excess fibre length. Thus, if the user happens to damage a fibre splice after having completed half of the splices in a multi-fibre cable, he is generally forced to abandon all of the completed splices and start again.
There is therefore a need for an improved fibre optic cable splice enclosure and method of installation, provided with consideration for the problems outlined above.